


Baby's First Coffin

by foggynite



Series: What Have I Become [4]
Category: Power Rangers Ninja Storm
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, Animal Transformation, F/M, M/M, Rangers, Soul Bond, Telepathic Bond, Vampires, Warlocks, Werewolves, Witches, angry kisses, involuntary dream-sharing, slow burn Cam/Hunter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-14
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-22 12:27:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 17,183
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30038676
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/foggynite/pseuds/foggynite
Summary: The rangers learn more about Lothor's operations, while Cam and Hunter have difficulties adjusting to their new powers and setting boundaries.Follows "Careful Boy, Careful".
Relationships: Blake Bradley/Tori Hanson, Hunter Bradley/Cameron Watanabe
Series: What Have I Become [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2208714
Kudos: 1





	Baby's First Coffin

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted at FFN from Oct 19, 2006 to Aug 1, 2009.
> 
> Title from “Baby’s First Coffin” by The Dillinger Escape Plan. 
> 
> Original Notes: Concepts borrowed from LJ Smith's Nightworld and Dark Visions series, as well as White Wolf's Hunter: The Reckoning. This AU follows the events of the original PRNS episodes up through "Return of Thunder." Chances are, if you recognize it, it's not mine.

"Whoo! We kicked ass!"

Cam jerked his head off the computer hutch with a gasp. The basement wards tingled across his skin as the rangers started thundering down the stairs, dispelling the last flicker of arousal from his dream.

He grimaced when he realized the gem shard was imprinted on his forearm. At least it wasn't his forehead.

Fuck. He'd fallen asleep during patrol.

_You had some interesting dreams, though…_

_I thought we agreed that you'd keep your voyeuristic tendencies to yourself._

_Can't help it when you project._

Ignoring Hunter's telepathic prodding and pretending it wasn't because he couldn't meet the other man's gaze just yet, Cam scrubbed at his face and tried to look alert. The remaining four rangers were oblivious to the conversation, and hopefully had been oblivious to his dream. _That_ would be embarrassing since he had fallen asleep with the gem shard. But the guys were shoving at each other with obnoxious grins, and he was relieved, since it meant he didn't have to kill Hunter for gossiping about him. Again. Or himself, for having--

_You're an interesting guy. They just want to know more about you. And they're willing to trade favors for info._

_That better be a joke._

"Hey, Cam," Tori chirped, distracting him from glaring at Hunter's broad back. She handed him a tightly rolled paper. "These are all the ships we searched tonight."

"You know," Dustin said with a frown. "This seemed like a good idea at the time, but seriously. We've got nothing. How are we going to find Lothor's secret lair if we can't even find his boat?"

"Don't lose faith, man," Shane said dryly, clapping Dustin on the shoulder. "There's only seven hundred left to check."

"For all we know, it isn't even docked in the harbor at night," Blake sighed, probably because it meant he didn't get to work with Tori.

"Which is why I have Tori and Dustin on harbor duty while the rest of you patrol," Cam pointed out blithely, crossing his arms and leaning back in his chair. "I accessed the Council's database to see if they had anything useful, but none of Lothor's known acquaintances have nautical experience, that we can tell at least. I also accessed reports from the area, call-ins where harbor patrol or the coast guard might have said they were stopping a ship but let it go or couldn't provide details afterwards."

"Whoever's driving might just use a cloaking spell," Tori mused.

Cam spun his chair around, clicking on his spreadsheets. "I'm also monitoring docking patterns, to see if there are any discrepancies with the harbor master's files."

Coming to stand behind Cam's chair, Hunter gave a low whistle.

"When do you have time to do all this?" He murmured, impressed but also concerned.

Cam shrugged, glancing up at him.

_It's not like I have a social life._

_True._

_You don't have to sound so smug._

_Oh, was that a disagree moment? I get confused with you._

_Somehow I doubt it's just with me._

_Gee, did I hit a nerve?_

"So," Shane said loudly, causing Cam and Hunter to look at him. Tori and Blake were grinning at each other and Dustin was absently cleaning vampire blood out of his ear, but Shane was frowning at Cam

"Since we couldn't give interim reports tonight, can we just give them to you tomorrow?" He asked pointedly. Cam could feel his cheeks heat up.

"That would be fine," he said with a quick nod.

"Oh good," Tori exclaimed from the weapons table. "I totally forgot to register for classes before I left this afternoon, so if I don't do it tonight, I won't be able to get any courses I need."

"What classes are you taking?" Blake asked.

Dustin made a strangled noise. Beside him, Shane rolled his eyes.

"You forgot to register, too, didn't you?"

Grabbing his already wild hair in two hands, Dustin gave them a panicked look.

"I stayed late to talk to Kelly about getting you guys jobs, and I didn't even think--"

Cam sighed, turning away from Dustin's miserable expression. Hunter's interested thoughts informed him that the jobs referred to were for the lamia and Blake.

"Sorry, man," Hunter said. "But we appreciate it."

"No prob," Dustin waved him off. "It's just, we get this set amount of time to sign up and I'll be at a rally tomorrow…"

"You can use the computer in the apartment," Cam said resignedly, saving his work and standing up. "C'mon."

He'd learned his lesson about letting the three rangers, well Shane and Dustin specifically, near the tech in Ops. While he hadn't been up to the apartment that often lately, the desktop there was still in working order. He wasn't surprised when the entire group followed him up the two flights of stairs to the apartment. Hunter's open curiosity almost made him slam the door in their faces.

_Territorial much?_

_You growled at me over the fridge yesterday._

_Details, details. I was hungry._

"Just keep your voices down," Cam whispered aloud. While the telepathy was convenient in lieu of communicators and compulsory with Hunter, they'd all agreed to talk aloud as much as possible to prevent any accidental slip-ups in mixed company later.

"How is sensei feeling?" Tori asked as Cam turned on the living room light and booted up the ancient desktop computer he hadn't used in forever.

"Last I checked he was still sleeping."

"Who knew guinea pigs could get colds?" Blake wondered.

"Here," Cam told Dustin and Tori, stepping away from the computer. "It's logged on. Just remember--"

"Only go to approved sites, no gaming, and no porn. We leave no trails," Tori finished cheekily.

Cam was nonplussed. "Well, yes."

"Dude, you've told us that every time since Shane downloaded a virus from that porn site," Dustin said, sitting down at the keyboard.

"This I've got to hear," Hunter crowed quietly, gleeful when Shane scowled.

Leaving them to whisper furiously amongst themselves, Cam walked quietly down the hall to the master bedroom. Cracking the door open, he let his eyes adjust and stared at the sprawling habitat he'd erected for his dad in the far corner.

"Is there something you need, Cameron?"

His father shuffled out of the little hut, wrapped in a handkerchief. His voice was more nasal than usual and it was disconcerting.

"Just checking in. Do you need anything?"

"A cup of tea would not be remiss."

Cam was fairly certain that normal guinea pigs did not drink tea on a regular basis, but it wasn't unusual for his dad to have a small shot glass' worth.

"Green or oolong?"

"Oolong, please."

"I'll be right back." He hesitated in the doorway. "Tori and Dustin needed to use the computer, so everyone's up here."

"Ah, I had wondered." If his dad was disconcerted, it didn't show. "Thank you, Cameron."

Cam closed the bedroom door quietly and avoided the agitated whispers in the living room, going instead to the kitchen. On auto-pilot, he pulled out the tea kettle and turned on the stove.

His father's favorite shot glass was in the dish rack, but Cam stared at the dust-covered tea set his mother had bought shortly before her death. It hadn't been used in over a year.

Things had changed after Lothor's first attack. The Watanabes had never been overly social to begin with, but they'd occasionally had other night worlders at the apartment for dinner, even if his father went to the Bloody Mary to settle public disputes. Now though, those infrequent guests had been long neglected, but the three rookie rangers had more than filled up the space, keeping mostly to the basement but also coming upstairs at times. And with their boarders in the spare room--

"You must be really tired tonight," Hunter said quietly, just out of striking distance.

\--Cam never got a moment's peace.

Glaring at him, Cam straightened his shoulders and opened the tea cupboard.

"Why didn't you wake me up earlier?" He snapped, keeping his voice low.

Hunter crossed his arms over his chest and gave Cam an exasperated look. "In case you failed to notice, you kind of need the sleep. We had things covered."

Blake and Tori burst out laughing in the living room, the noise quickly stifled. Cam glanced at the doorway, then back at Hunter.

_My health is none of your business, so kindly keep your opinions to yourself._

_As long as we've got this thing,_ Hunter motioned between them. _Your health_ is _my business. When you run yourself ragged, I don't get enough sleep._

Cam snorted. _Oh please--_

Hunter glowered at him. _You try sleeping after things like--_

The images came sharp and quick, tactile memories that were-- A blurry dreamscape, heat suffusing Cam's naked body as he stared down at the blue eyes gazing up at him from beneath blonde bangs, wet red lips wrapped around Cam's cock, fangs grazing lightly--

"Stop."

The command came out louder than he intended, but he'd never been so angry. Humiliation and fury warred in his chest, his cheeks flushed as he clenched his fists and struggled to breathe.

Hunter glared defiantly back at him, arms crossed tightly, nostrils flaring as his bright blue eyes glittered dangerously.

_You think I want to hear your dreams?_ Hunter demanded harshly. _You think I like knowing that you can't help it? That you wake up disgusted with yourself?_

_I'm not--_ Cam drew a deep breath. _It's not because--_

He couldn't form a coherent sentence. Couldn't talk this out. Just-- It was so violating, to know that his deepest thoughts were there for Hunter's amusement. That he knew without a doubt that Hunter was attracted to him and was okay with it like Cam couldn't let himself be, and that Hunter wasn't as horrible of a person as Cam originally thought, and that he actually liked the sarcastic commentary that now colored his day-- And for Hunter to throw that dream back at him-- Just push it in his face like that--

"Sorry," Hunter muttered, looking away. He was still angry, but there was hurt underneath it when Cam stopped to listen. "That was uncalled for."

Cam took another deep breath and tried to let it go.

_It's not you. Not disgust-- I just--_

He couldn't explain it, but Hunter must have understood something, because the line of his shoulders relaxed. Cam could feel his thoughts clicking into place.

_You can't control every little thing, Cam._ Hunter met his eyes again. _Life's not like that. You have thoughts, I have thoughts-- Fuck, for all we know, we're dreaming together. I know you've caught a few of mine--_

Not all of them had been pleasant-- The helpless ones, the angry ones, where Hunter was running and running and couldn't reach them in time-- But there had been a few dreams that Cam would label inappropriate, that left him jerking awake to a sticky mess in his sheets.

_Maybe if you just stopped resisting the connection so much--_ Hunter started to send, but the tea kettle whistled and Cam turned away, shuttering his thoughts as best he could.

_It just seems like the more you concentrate on pushing it away when you're awake, the stronger it is when you're asleep._

Cam paused at that. Was that really happening? And just how bad was it getting for Hunter? Was it the same as Cam, who was constantly aware of Hunter's presence, but still found most of Hunter's actual thoughts to be murky, hidden behind roiling thunder clouds that he only caught flashes of?

_Yours are-- pointy,_ Hunter tried to describe the swirling impressions he pushed at Cam. _Like, even when you're meditating, you're there and I can't help noticing them, but when you think of me--_

_They're clearer--_

Piercing. Sharp-edged like a katana blade. Linear, logical, but emotional at the same time. Impossible to ignore, no matter what Hunter was doing, and that dream tonight had him wishing for some thugs to take out his frustrations on because Cam was-- Cam smelled spicy and musky and a little like the electrical parts he was always working with-- and Hunter had to act like nothing was going on because the others hadn't a clue-- It had been--

_I didn't realize I was like that._ Cam thought stiltedly. _I would never force that sort of thing on you--_

_I know-- It's not--_

Cam turned to him, tea preparations forgotten. Thunder and lightning like an opaque shroud hiding Hunter's thoughts away, until a single bolt lit up the landscape--

_I wanted it, too._

They stood frozen, staring at each other. Cam figured he was probably in shock. Hunter looked just as surprised at himself for the admission.

"Oh." Cam blinked.

"Hey guys," Blake interrupted, coming into the kitchen. "We're almost done with the computer…"

Cam turned back to making his father's tea, striving for casual as he poured hot water over the tea leaves, knowing that Blake was giving them both an odd look since Hunter was concentrating on not acting defensive. Nothing to see here, move along.

"I have tea, if anyone wants," Cam said in what he hoped was an offhand tone. He didn't think any of the rangers actually drank tea, except maybe Tori, and it was late enough to be ridiculous, but Hunter was falling into a brood from whatever Blake's eyebrows were telling him--

_I don't brood._

Cam snorted before he could control himself and turned with the small tea tray to find Blake frowning at Hunter. The blonde lamia hunched his shoulders and looked away, and that struck Cam as so out of place, so submissive, and what was Blake implying--

He didn't realize he was getting his hackles up until Hunter sent apologetically, _Hey, it's not him. We're brothers-- We were practically raised like twins--_

And now Hunter was part of this separate thing with Cam, no matter how the others were interconnected. Cam had never had any siblings, but the protectiveness in Hunter was warring with his guilt and it wasn't--

_It's not your fault,_ Cam projected, to the group this time so that they would hear, too. _You didn't know what would happen._

That caught Blake's attention away from his brother, made his eyes narrow.

_Of course it's not his fault,_ the younger Bradley glared.

_Cam, let it go._ Hunter sent privately.

Cam arched an eyebrow at him and sent privately back, _We didn't ask for this. It's not like you did it on purpose. He'll have to learn to deal with--_

"I thought we weren't going to do the mind-speak thing outside of patrol," Dustin said in an exaggerated whisper, poking his head around the door frame.

"That was the idea," Blake drawled, still focused on Cam.

"Although it's kind of helpful on the track," Dustin continued, seemingly oblivious as he yawned like a Wookie. "We're done with your computer, dude. We even kept Shane away from the porn sites--"

"Hey," came from the living room.

"--So we're gonna head out. We'll get those reports in tomorrow. Promise."

Tori appeared at Dustin's shoulder, eyes darting quickly between the three of them before settling on Blake.

"We really need to get home," she said quietly. "It's late, or early, depending on how you look at it."

Blake finally looked away from Cam, smiling at Tori.

"I'll walk you down."

As they left, Dustin noticed the small tray in Cam's hands.

"Oh hey, tell Sensei to get better for us, all right?"

"I will."

Fearing the tea was already too cold, Cam spared a glance at Hunter's closed expression before heading down the hallway. The rangers knew to let themselves out, and Blake would be there to set the wards anyway.

There was no movement in his father's room, so Cam gently placed the tea tray on the edge of the habitat platform.

"Thank you, Cameron," his father called out from the little hut.

"I'll collect the dishes in the morning," Cam murmured and turned to leave.

His father repeating his name made him pause.

"Is everything all right?"

Not a question asked lightly between them. Cam smiled grimly in the darkened room and continued to the door.

"Everything's fine, Dad. Good night."

They'd only had these new powers for a week. Of course they were still getting used to it. It was requiring a huge amount of adjusting on everyone's parts, so Blake would just have to deal.

The interrupted conversation came back to him and his cheeks flushed. Thankfully, the apartment had cleared out and it was just Hunter who remained, still lingering in the kitchen. Cam went straight to the sink under Hunter's amused gaze and started rinsing the tea strainer briskly as he ignored the eyes on him.

They would get used to this. No problem. The others seemed to be doing fine--

_At least they don't have it the same as us, thank the goddess. I mean, I love him to death, but I don't ever want to even imagine having to listen to my little bro's dreams--_

Cam had to smile at the images Hunter projected at him. _You would never throw Blake out a window. Or yourself._

_Yeah, well_. Hunter shrugged, radiating discomfort. _I'm just saying. I can handle being stuck with you._

Looking over his shoulder, Cam smirked.

_Likewise. I think._

Hunter grinned back.

_Just,_ Cam added wryly. _Wake me up next time, okay?_

The teasing light in Hunter's eyes didn't bode well for future incidents.

_If you really want me to._

And that was the question, wasn't it?

~~~

_Shifter. Behind,_ Hunter sent the warning to Tori while he easily blocked a punch from a gothed-up vamp.

The other ranger twisted gracefully out of the shifter's way as she flattened another gang member with a roundhouse kick to her left. Flinging her hand out, Tori sent off an arc of blue power above Hunter's head. A body landed on the alley floor with a sharp crack.

_Watch your own,_ she sent with a trace of amusement.

Wrenching the vamp's arm into an elbow lock, Hunter snorted and kicked the next punk in the face with a savage joy he'd deny if questioned.

_I knew he was there._

_Of course._

They ran out of opponents to beat on at the same time. In the dim light from the streetlamps, Tori's blue eyes glittered through the slit in her face mask, and he didn't need the telepathy to know she was gloating.

_I believe that's thirteen for me,_ she sent smugly as they streaked to the nearest rooftop for a clear view of the gang grabbing injured members and scattering.

_I have fifteen, with the scouts by the dojo,_ Hunter countered.

She shook a finger at him, knowing he'd see it in the darkness. _Uh-uh. Before patrol doesn't count._

_Technically, Shane's winning,_ Cam broke in, thoughts sharp and pointed. 

Hunter was embarrassed by the way his body responded to even just the mental voice, every sense going hyper-aware.

_Whose side are you on?_ Hunter grumbled back at him.

Cam ignored the comment, but Tori was laughing at them, he just knew it. When he glared at her, she shook her head and projected a sense of innocence he didn't believe for a second.

_Why couldn't I patrol with Blake again?_ Hunter sighed.

_Because you keep fighting with Shane,_ Tori and Cam sent simultaneously. Hunter was about to get indignant, then Cam added, _Plus Tori and Blake distract each other too easily._

Hunter smirked at the outraged set of Tori's shoulders.

_You could go back to counting boats with Dustin,_ he sent to her.

_Or we could make you do it for two weeks straight,_ she sent back sweetly.

_Corner of Fifth and Eastbrook,_ Cam interrupted sharply, worry echoing his thoughts like the reverberation of a bell. They were already heading for Eastbrook when he sent, _Blake and Shane need help. Kidnapping. General._

Thoughts and impressions came at them quickly, Cam's thoughts like a compact data burst, filling them in on everything he knew from the other two rangers.

Vexacus taking another witch. A gang of Lothor's people stronger than the normal street punks they usually dealt with. Magic being cast about. Kapri.

Alarm shot through Hunter. Blake was in real danger.

Bloodlust crawled along his limbs, elongated his teeth. He could feel the darker depths of himself unfurling-- the colder, calculating parts he tried to pretend didn't exist-- and he surged past Tori, feet barely touching the rooftops.

He felt the fighting before he hit the distortion spell. The magic around them might have been absorbing the noise, but the waves of kinetic energy their movements sent out were still there and Hunter could feel it across his skin, like a snake tasting the air.

Plowing through the distortion spell, he took out the first person to swing at him, heel of his hand smashing into the shifter's half-transformed face. An arc of blood hit his leather gloves. What had appeared to be an empty street corner from outside the barrier was actually a scene of carnage. Blake and Shane came into his awareness like he'd opened a door. Snarls and the sounds of fighting assaulted his hearing, disorientating.

Blood. A lot of it. Some human. Some shifter. Bodies were on the ground, most unmoving.

The spatter distracted him. Hunger pangs registered in his senses, quickly followed by Cam's recoiling from the urge, an image of barb wire drawing tighter around his thoughts. His disgusted reaction helped Hunter to shove instinct aside.

Because there was no time for thought-- The world narrowed down to the hulking figure that had just tossed his little brother aside.

Hunter's fist was plowing into Vexacus' ribs before Blake hit the ground. He followed through with a punch aimed at Vexacus' throat, but the shifter blocked, tried to grapple with him. Hunter broke free with a snarl and slammed his knee up into the soft part of Vexacus' gut.

Pink energy crackled around Hunter as Shane deflected Kapri's offensive spell. He growled at the other ranger.

_Sorry._ Shane sent shortly, both their attentions elsewhere.

Vexacus recovered from the stomach blow, clawed hands swiping at Hunter's face. Bloodlust screamed in Hunter's veins and the need to sink his teeth into his opponent's thick neck and just tear--

_Where'd she go?_ Blake sent out, slowly getting back up as he was flanked by Tori, who held off the remaining thugs who thought a fallen ranger was easy pickings.

There was the image of a dark-haired, olive-skinned witch blasting Kapri with fire magic.

The killer in Hunter sneered at the distraction they presented.

_Don't know,_ from Shane as he hurtled a spell back at Kapri. _We need to find her--_

_I don't see her,_ Tori sent.

Blake was moving in stiff jerks, arm wrapped around his side. A thug scrambled towards him, only to receive a sharp kick in the neck from Tori. The force of her blow carried the unfortunate street tough into the middle of Hunter and Vexacus' fight.

Without a thought, Vexacus impaled the vamp on his sharp claws and flung him out of the way. The punk screamed as he went, and Hunter took advantage of the opening Vexacus left in his defense to grab him by the throat, slamming him down into the concrete sidewalk.

"Where is she?" Hunter growled, voice inhuman. "What do you want with her?"

"Fuck you, kid," Vexacus coughed and tried to pry off Hunter's glove-covered hand. "You should've stayed out of town."

Hunter snarled and slammed his fist into Vexacus' smirking face. The shifter tried to kick at his head with a steel-toed boot, but Hunter released his neck long enough to block the hit. Vexacus slipped further into his transformation, some sort of reptile, and broke free of Hunter's hold, rolling to his feet.

Recovering quickly, Hunter aimed a kick low, dredging up his ranger magic, adding a crackle of crimson energy to the blow. It arced over Vexacus' thick skin like an electric current, the flash lighting up the area. Hunter followed up with a roundhouse to the shifter's exposed middle.

Vexacus went down. Hard. But Hunter couldn't back off, couldn't risk him getting back up--

"Hunter," Blake was yelling, out loud and in his head. Maybe had been for a while. "Stop! _You'll kill him!_ "

His brother's fear-- of Hunter-- of _Hunter_ \-- made him change the trajectory of his punch at the last second, a crater blossoming in the concrete beneath his fist-- made him back off into a defensive crouch, chest heaving--

"And that's our cue to leave," Kapri announced, nervous tremor in her arrogant voice. Vexacus wasn't moving.

Shane had backed her into a corner with a flurry of desperate maneuvers. Hunter hadn't even noticed.

Kapri and Vexacus disappeared in swirls of pink energy.

The distortion field that had been shielding them from the human world dissolved.

"Oh shit," Shane muttered whole-heartedly. He was hunched over, gasping for air.

"On it," Tori snapped, and cast a quick cloaking spell. It would hide them from human eyes, but wouldn't block any noises they made.

_We need to get this cleaned up NOW,_ Shane said as he straightened up. _Blake--?_

_I'm fine._

The advantage (or disadvantage) of the web was that they could tell when someone was lying.

Hunter rose quickly, grabbing two bodies by the collars of their shirts and dragging them towards the nearest alley. The vamps had shriveled to husks, but the shifters were heavy, some half-changed. The desiccated face of his own kind stared up at him.

_This street war is getting ridiculous,_ Tori sent sadly as she hauled another body over. _We shouldn't have to kill other night worlders._

_This one's alive._ Shane toed the unmoving figure of a shifter cautiously. _I'm gonna drop him at the Bloody Mary while he's still out of it._

_We'll finish up here,_ Hunter sent shortly. Be careful. 

_Always, man._

A blur of motion, Shane streaked off into the night with the shifter slung over his shoulder. No one could teleport directly into night world sanctuaries, so hopefully Shane would get the guy there before he woke up. At least there wasn't anyone out on the streets at this time of night, although car headlights occasionally cut across them from the next street over.

Hunter and Tori made a small pile of bodies in the alley while Blake focused on clearing the pools of blood from the street. Hunter frowned when his little brother swayed on his feet.

_I've contacted the disposers,_ Cam sent to all of them. _You should clear out before they get there._

The warlock's thoughts were still shuttered from Hunter, hidden behind heavy metal gates with sharp edges. Hunter was glad for the distance. The smell of blood was making him restless, and his thoughts were still in a visceral place, hunger and desire and violence roiling in him no matter how he tried to calm himself.

He didn't need to freak Cam out more than he already did.

Tori cast a quick illusion over the bodies, making them look like a pile of boxes to the casual observer. The three of them streaked to the rooftops, Blake stumbling through his landing. Hunter caught him before he fell, tamping down on his own panic as he lowered Blake to the rooftop.

_Should I go get the van?_ Tori asked in concern. Her worry shimmered in her thoughts, tendrils of mist directed at Blake.

_Sorry,_ Blake sent, along with a rapid slideshow of images, mostly Vexacus and Kapri ripping into him and Shane. Shane had engaged Kapri, but Vexacus had taken their victim hostage, so Blake had gone hand-to-hand to get her free.

_Get the van,_ Hunter told her. _We'll wait here._

_All right._ She was gone between breaths.

_I'll be fine, bro,_ Blake sent, patting Hunter's arm. _Just gotta catch my breath._

_Right,_ Hunter replied grimly.

He stayed hunched protectively over his brother, senses alert for any movement around them. Anything to tamp down on his urge to hunt Lothor down and rip his heart out.

Maybe it was the human blood he'd had, still messing with his head even after detoxing for a week. He didn't think he'd ever been this-- vicious.

Cars passed by in the street. A disturbing blankness formed in the alley near the bodies, dissipating as quickly as it appeared, and he figured the disposers had cleaned up the site. Theirs was a magic Hunter never wanted to encounter. The less they had to be called upon, the better.

He mentally poked at Cam's shields.

_We're clear here. How's Shane?_

_Still at the Bloody Mary._

It was different when he spoke with Cam privately. When Cam sent to everyone else, the sharpness of his thoughts was blunted, like he was standing on the other side of the room from them. When he sent to Hunter alone--

His mental voice was like a whisper up Hunter's spine, a private murmur in his ear. It was distracting and infuriating and hot all at once.

_Blake,_ Cam sent to everyone. _How are you injured?_

_Nothing bad. Just a little bruised,_ Blake sent back, but the underlying pain was obvious.

_His knee,_ Hunter sent briskly. _And his elbow. I think his head tapped the pavement, too._

Blake tilted his head back to glare up at him, giving Hunter a dirty look through the slit of his mask. Hunter just gave a tight shrug in response.

Coming back with the van through the streets took Tori longer than getting to the dojo had, and when she finally pulled up to the curb, Hunter lifted Blake up by the armpits, holding on firmly as they teleported down to the sidewalk. They scrambled into the van and Tori sped off, cloaking spell settled over the van in a warm glow.

No one spoke, but Hunter caught Tori shooting them worried glances in the rearview mirror. He was happy to feel the alley wards wash over them as she parked behind the dojo.

He didn't relax until Blake was ensconced on the futon in the basement. Hunter helped Blake out of his jerkin while Cam knelt beside them, holding a crystal over Blake's knee.

"A bad sprain," Cam muttered, pulling another crystal out of the pouch he'd set on the futon cushion. "Give me a minute and I can reduce the swelling. I don't think you tore the ligaments."

Standing to the side, Hunter crossed his arms over his chest and waited. Blake had been injured before during patrols, but the guys they were up against now were nothing like the petty street toughs in their old town. He hated the thought that they were lucky this was their worst injury so far.

_If you're just going to hover, go sit down,_ Cam sent sharply without looking up.

Growling, Hunter took Cam's usual seat at the computers, spinning the chair to watch the futon. Cam's hands were steady, a little frown of concentration on his face as the crystal lit up from within with a pale green flash.

Movement above his head caught Hunter's attention, but it was just Sensei returning from the upstairs ducts.

"I trust the injury is not serious?" The guinea pig inquired.

Since Cam didn't respond and Blake was glowering at them, Hunter said, "Bad sprain, Sensei."

"Ah. Cameron is adept at such healings."

Cam didn't react to the compliment. Sighing wearily, Hunter slouched in the chair.

"Has Dustin checked in, Sensei?" Tori asked quietly, coming to stand by the computers.

"Yes. He has already reported back and retired for the night." Sensei folded his little paws over his belly. "He mentioned something about a rally tomorrow morning."

"The demo," Hunter supplied. "We're supposed to go, too."

"And we will," Blake said with determination. Cam glanced up at him sharply.

"You really shouldn't strain this leg for the next few days," he warned.

"Then we'll see how I feel when I wake up," Blake hedged. When Cam sniffed in resignation, Hunter smirked.

Cam finished up with Blake's knee, then checked out his elbow and head.

"Just bruised," he proclaimed, but healed the bumps anyway. Blake stretched his limbs carefully, grinning when there wasn't any pain.

"Sweet."

"I'll help you upstairs," Tori offered sweetly, and Hunter resisted the urge to roll his eyes when Blake climbed eagerly to his feet.

"If I might have a moment of your time before Blake retires," Sensei said after a discreet cough.

Hunter focused on the guinea pig as Blake came to stand next to Tori.

"As you know, this dojo is a listed sanctuary for any night world member seeking shelter," Sensei began and Hunter's stomach sank. "The spare room upstairs is meant for temporary guests only--"

"We can find someplace else," Hunter interrupted quickly, wanting this over with.

"Yeah," Blake agreed. "You guys have done more than we ever expected..."

"You need not leave," Sensei said gently but firmly. "I was merely about to suggest that you move your things to the upstairs apartment. Since Cameron has chosen to have his room down here, there are two bedrooms available. Of course, I still inhabit the master bedroom, but you'll find I don't take up as much space as I used to."

Tori smiled at the joke, but Hunter was busy being surprised. Before he or Blake could respond, Sensei held up a paw.

"You do not need to answer now, of course. Please feel free to think it over. But you are welcome in our home."

Hunter recovered enough to echo Blake's thanks, bowing with him and Tori as Sensei said goodnight and left again.

Blake was saying something to Tori, but Hunter wasn't paying attention. Instead, he was watching the tense line of Cam's shoulders, the stubborn set to his jaw. The way his thoughts were tightly sealed away.

The Gem shard was hanging around Cam's neck, wrapped in silver by Tori and slipped on a leather thong. It pulsed with a faint greenish tinge and Cam brought his hand up instinctively to cover it.

"Shane says something came up," he announced, frowning. "He'll see you at the demo tomorrow. Well, so much for getting everyone's reports…"

"What came up?" Blake wondered.

"Do I look like a messaging service?" Cam asked dryly, picking up the first aid kit and returning it to its place next to the futon.

"We'll just ask him tomorrow," Tori said, giving Blake a look.

"Yeah. Good idea."

Blake followed Tori when she headed up the stairs. He walked her to her van every night, so it had become routine, and normally Hunter would go up to shower at that point, but he had some questions.

Cam didn't seem surprised when he stayed, but Hunter could feel the tension between them. Cam wasn't meeting his gaze. The other man's entire posture was closed off, defensive, without seeming to be. Or maybe it was just the warning spikes around his mental shields.

With a sigh, Cam pulled the Gem over his head, bringing it to the locked drawer of the desk. He was close enough that Hunter couldn't avoid inhaling the spicy scent of his soap and it did things to Hunter's head, made him want things--

Tamping down on the thoughts, Hunter shifted to lean against the computer hutch and watched Cam shut down programs on one of the screens.

"Did you know about this?" Hunter asked cautiously, because he hadn't gotten a single whiff of this beforehand and that either meant that Cam hadn't known, or he'd been hiding it deliberately. Which made Hunter more uncomfortable than he thought it would.

The look Cam gave him was full of impatience. Hunter felt his own hackles rising at it, like Cam thought he was wasting his time or something when Hunter was _trying_ to have a conversation with him.

"Contrary to popular belief, my father and I do occasionally speak to each other," Cam responded with annoyance.

"Then why didn't you mention anything?" Hunter snapped out before he could stop himself, pushing away from the hutch. The earlier disquiet had never really left him while Blake was being treated, and it flared up again.

"What, you didn't read my thoughts and find out?" Cam asked snidely, and Hunter realized he wasn't the only one spoiling for a fight.

"How the hell can I, with you pushing your shields at me so much, I can barely hear my own thoughts?"

"Like you're missing that much," Cam scoffed.

"What the fuck, Cam?" Hunter growled, angry and baffled. "I'm just trying to see how you feel about this."

"My feelings are none of your concern."

"Haven't we already had this conversation?"

"Obviously you weren't listening, then."

Cam's cheeks were flushed, nostrils flaring, back ramrod straight, and Hunter's traitorous mind thought he was gorgeous. The resentment of that added an extra edge to his next words.

"So you're okay with your dad wanting us to move in," he bit out. "Even though last week you accused us of wanting to murder him in his sleep."

"Maybe he thinks—" _you need to be supervised_ , Cam shot back, switching mid-sentence without realizing it, anger finally leaking through those damn walls.

_Somehow I doubt that--_

_It's not like I want you around here all the time!_ Cam exploded.

_Cam, I can read your mind and even I don't know what you want,_ Hunter sent, stepping into Cam's space, resisting the urge to grab him and shake him or kiss him or something.

_I want you out of my head!_ Cam snarled, not backing down. _I want my privacy. I don't want to feel like ripping someone's throat out or checking Blake's diet or going out for a spin on my dirt bike. I don't want you in here. I don't want you._

Cam used words as weapons, and it stung. Hunter lashed out.

_Liar._

Cam's head reared back, and he looked like he wanted to throttle Hunter. Good. That made them equal.

_You want me as much as I want you. You're just too fucking cowardly to admit it. You want me--_

He dredged up every dirty thought he'd caught from Cam, every dream, every stray fantasy, and threw it at him, daring him to ignore it. Because Cam did want him and Hunter felt it whenever they were close.

Cam inhaled sharply, grabbing the front of Hunter's jerkin and stepping in. Hunter lifted his chin, just daring him.

"You make me crazy," Cam whispered, furious, and Hunter knew his own smirk wasn't nice.

"Good. Because you drive me nuts," Hunter hissed back.

He wanted Cam to admit what they'd both avoided talking about-- They were under each other's skins, burrowed so deep all this tension, all this want, wasn't going away. Because Hunter actually _liked_ Cam as a person, but Cam was so damn prickly, and Hunter even liked that--

He didn't know which one of them started the kiss. Cam was in his face, still holding his jerkin by the laces, and then they were kissing and it was-- Not perfect. Angry. Mean. A punishment? Filled with frustration and need. A tangle of confused emotions Hunter didn't feel like exploring, because Cam's lips were dry and soft but the kiss grew deeper, wetter as Hunter opened his mouth, settled his hands on Cam's hips. Cam tugged on his jerkin laces, pulled Hunter closer and held on so tight it was almost painful, like he thought Hunter was the one trying to get away, but Hunter wasn't going anywhere, not as long as this feeling was singing in his veins, stronger than bloodlust--

Cam wrenched away from him with a gasp, shoving at Hunter's shoulders until there was space between their heaving chests.

"Fuck," Cam said through gritted teeth. _Fuck._

Hunter wiped at his wet lips, the smell of Cam on him, going straight to his groin-- The way Cam was staring at Hunter's fingers, at his swollen lips-- Desire was thick in the air, musky and sweaty and-- Cam wanted to touch him again, wanted to lose himself in the feel of another body against his own and forget about everything for just a little while, because Hunter's cheeks were reddened, his eyes bright, stripping Cam down--

Groaning, Hunter reached for Cam again, sliding his hand over Cam's bicep, feeling the tension there. Feeling the way Cam leaned into him, came forward again, and his lips were scalding, making Hunter gasp and then their tongues were sliding together, Cam's palms resting on his chest, head tilted back at just the right angle--

_I don't even know which thoughts are my own._

The tendril of thought was quiet, drowning under _want_ and _need_ and _skin_ , but it stopped Hunter cold, like the shock of stepping on ice and plunging into the river beneath.

He froze, and Cam stiffened immediately, sensing the retreat. Hunter swallowed thickly as Cam stepped back, and it was like neither of them could catch their breaths.

Hunter closed his eyes, trying to block out the image of a rumpled Cam, glasses gone, lips puffy, dark expression.

"Hunter?" Cam said out loud, and maybe that was best. Maybe that was safer.

Taking in a deep breath, Hunter opened his eyes, but couldn't meet Cam's gaze.

"You said it yourself," he murmured hoarsely. "We don't know how these powers work yet. What you're feeling--"

He waved between them, leaving the sentence unfinished, because he didn't want to voice the thought that he was forcing himself on Cam, forcing his desires on him--

Tonight had thrown him. He was still reeling, off center, and Cam--

"I'm being too reactionary," Cam whispered, jaw clenched as the truth sat there between them. "I'm too angry."

Hunter plucked at the snapped laces of his jerkin and nodded.

Cam exhaled through his nose, clenching his fist and echoing the nod. The steel doors were there again, not as strong but enough to keep Cam's thoughts from leaking out at him. Hunter tried his own imaging, black shadows, clouds at night, stillness. The effort to back down tore at him.

They stood there, only two steps between them, but he could feel Cam pulling back, pulling away.

"We should drop this for tonight," Cam finally said quietly. "Maybe we'll have a better perspective tomorrow."

Or maybe Cam would avoid him like the plague. Hunter was tempted to do some avoiding of his own.

"Us moving in," he said, throat raw because he had to know. "Will this be a problem?"

Sighing, Cam pinched the bridge of his nose and turned away, looking for his glasses. They were under the computer chair, but Hunter let him find them, didn't come any closer. But it was like Cam moving had broken the spell and Hunter's legs worked again.

As Cam retrieved his glasses, Hunter headed for the stairs, heart heavy.

"Hunter," Cam said, freezing him again. He looked over his shoulder at the warlock and Cam looked tired. "I really do want to talk about this later. But…"

He took a deep breath and looked away.

"You didn't force me here." The words were low, but strong. "I'm not going to push you out on the streets just because I can't handle the truth."

It was reassuring, and yet, bleak. But Hunter nodded and continued up the stairs. His hands were shaking as he twisted the doorknob. Cam never moved.

The light was on in the spare room, and it hurt Hunter's eyes. His anger flared again, and the distance from Cam just made him want to grit his teeth or scream or something. He tore open his duffel bag on the cot and retrieved his sleeping pants.

In the real bed, Blake tried to sit up.

"Hey," he gave Hunter an assessing look.

"Lie down," Hunter snapped and stomped into the bathroom.

"Arf," Blake drawled, leaning back on his elbows. "What crawled up your butt and died?"

Hunter stormed back into the room, yanking the blankets off the spare cot. It was too hot for the comforter. The entire room was too hot. Hunter felt like his skin was crawling.

Balling the blanket up, he threw it at the far wall.

Watching its progress, Blake arched an eyebrow. "Seriously, bro. What's with you tonight?"

"Nothing's with me," Hunter growled, then focused intently on tucking his dirty uniform into his duffel bag. He asked snidely, "How's the knee?"

Blake snorted at the attempt to deflect. "Better. Nothing a couple hours of sleep won't fix."

When Hunter didn't respond, just zipped up his bag and dropped it on the floor, Blake asked quietly, "Is this about Sensei's offer? Cause we can always find someplace else--"

Hunter kicked his duffle bag under the cot and sat down on the edge, shoving his hands in his hair.

"It's not like we have any other place to go," he said, closing his eyes. "Fuck."

He was tired.

"We can find someplace else," Blake stated again. "Rent a place near the city, close enough to help with patrols--"

"With what money?" Hunter demanded. "You think I like this? You think I wanna be dependent on someone again? We've got nowhere else, bro. We're talking end of the line. We're broke, we've got a price on our heads, and we're screwed. Royally screwed."

He'd fucked this all up, so badly. He'd wanted revenge against his parents' murderer at any cost, and now they had no resources to fall back on, no savings, no friends except five strangers they had no choice but to trust. One of which he'd just molested. He hated being backed into a corner like this, but if he was going to keep Blake safe, there really weren't any other options.

"We can get jobs," Blake said quietly after a moment, jaw set stubbornly. "Dustin said he talked to his boss--"

"Blake," Hunter sighed, his anger receding and leaving him drained. He scrubbed wearily at his face. "We won't be able to afford a place even near the city and have you take classes--"

"So I'll take another semester off."

Hunter lowered his hand to glare. "No. Bad enough you're already a year behind--"

"What do I need college for anyway?" Blake demanded. "I spend more time at the track--"

"Mom and Dad wanted you to go, so you're going to go, dammit--"

"They wanted you to go, too--"

"One of us needs to work!" He shouted, anger flaring again. "You're halfway done, you might as well finish. It'd be stupid for me to start now. We live here, we can afford it."

"Not if it's going to cause more problems," Blake snapped back. "Besides, it's my life. If I don't want to take classes, I'm not going to."

"I _know_." Hunter's shoulders slumped. "Dammit, Blake. I fight enough with Cam, I don't want to fight with you, too."

Blake opened his mouth to speak but shut it without saying anything. They sat in silence for a moment before Hunter scrubbed at his face again.

"It's late. I'm tired."

"Yeah," Blake said, subdued. "Demo tomorrow."

"Yeah," Hunter sighed and flopped back on the cot. The frame creaked and the thought of a real bed was tempting. "Night."

"Night." Blake clicked off the light.

His brother's presence was there when Hunter closed his eyes, agitated storm clouds, lightning streaking between them. Hunter inhaled deeply, holding it, before slowly exhaling.

He was so off balance lately, and Cam--

The steel doors were still weak, but Cam was focused on strings of code Hunter couldn't understand, mind skipping from reference to reference as he lost himself in the familiar, the routine.

\--Cam just made the confusion worse.

Curling around himself, Hunter tried to sleep.

~~~

Deep breath. Hold it. Release.

Breathing evenly through his nose, Cam kept his eyes closed and hands hanging limp in his lap. The back of his computer chair pressed between his shoulder blades, grounding him. The dojo air conditioning unit kicked on with an electric hum. He was alone, in a safe place.

He was fine. There was no cause for concern here.

_Come on, you're so slow_

_might actually get sponsored_

_Man, two more hours of this_

Cam wasn't holding the Gem of Souls shard. Yet, he could still hear the rangers. All five of them out on patrol; Hunter and Blake near the financial district, Tori and Shane near the university, Dustin at the docks.

This awareness was unlike his compulsive link to Hunter, though. He couldn't sense anything the others were not consciously sending to each other. But he could feel them, even Dustin streaking from ship to ship, mentally reaching out to the rest of their web, wanting to touch each other's minds, presences. Sparks of contact when they connected. They probably weren't even aware they were doing it, either.

Deep breath. Hold it. Release.

He shouldn't be able to sense them. Not with the shard sitting on the desk in front of him, its leather cord well away from him. Even his connection to Hunter had seemed to fade with enough distance.

Only, it hadn't been fading recently, had it?

Sense-memories of Hunter's mouth, his soft lips, palms burning at Cam's hips, pulling him in closer-- How he had wanted to crawl inside Hunter, pour himself into the other man's mind and lose himself, even for a few moments, in the heartbeat of another person no matter how shameful, how embarrassing his need was--

Deep breath. Hold it. Release.

He could feel Hunter's thoughts shift his way, tendrils of lightning curving in Cam's direction when the blonde sensed his regard. A curious seeking, like a tilted head from the other side of a room, that Cam refused to acknowledge. He quickly shied from the connection, throwing up his shields and thinking _notnowbusygoaway_ until Hunter gave a mental shrug and focused on streaking to the next rooftop behind Blake.

Cam forced himself to relax, a headache forming in his temples from keeping his eyes so tightly shut.

There had to be an explanation. Prolonged exposure to the Gem, maybe. He was currently the shard's primary handler. Or maybe the telepathy was something that strengthened with use.

Upon reflection, he realized that this had been building slowly on the edges of his awareness, every time the rangers went out on patrol. Maybe it was the same for the rest of their little web. But if that was the case, then why hadn't the others mentioned it? Did he want to bring it up? Shouldn't he?

Only, if no one else was experiencing these side effects-- if they thought it would be too much for him-- his father might pull him from duty completely. If his father thought that Cam's objectivity was compromised, that Cam couldn't control himself, he'd be lucky if his responsibilities were the only thing his father revoked.

But Cam had already lost control the previous night, when he and Hunter--

Stop. Stop thinking. Deep breath. Hold it. Release.

There was an explanation. He just had to stay calm and figure things out. He could wait until everyone left Ops for the night and run a diagnostic check on himself. The data would be safe since no one else even came close to his encryption skills. All he had to do was keep this to himself for a while longer, figure out what was happening, and then present it in the best light possible.

Which was easier said than done when living in the same building as three ninjas, two of whom he had psychic connections with. One of whom he couldn't shut out completely.

But Cam had kept the apartment offer from Hunter, as much to test his own ability to do so as out of emotional upset. And he wasn't upset about his father opening their home to two rangers they'd only known for a few months. Kanoi Watanabe still owned the building and the business, still ran the ranger team, no matter his physical appearance. Cam would honor his father's wishes.

Even if he wanted to punt Hunter into the harbor some days.

Cam stiffened, eyes flying open.

His father was coming down the air duct tracks, back from his daily meditation upstairs. He was-- not a noticeable entity like the rangers, but. Present. There. A life force Cam could sense.

What the hell was going on?

Silently, Cam swiped the glowing green shard with one hand while jarring his main computer out of screen saver mode with the other. The air vent grill lifted, and his father stepped onto the top of the massive computer hutch. Cam frowned at the monitor.

"Any activity to report, Cameron?" His father asked once he was standing directly above him.

"Not much so far. Blake and Hunter interrupted a drug deal, non-night world, and Shane and Tori broke up an alley brawl before it got out of hand. Lamia and made-vampires, mostly." Cam accessed a database, but hesitated, glancing up. "Dustin hasn't reported any success with harbor duty…"

When Cam didn't continue further, his father arched a furry eyebrow. Cam gave a frustrated shrug in response.

"It's been almost three weeks, Dad. We're wasting resources. People are dying while we run around searching ships that have nothing to do with this."

"Patience, my son. Lothor did not build his empire by being careless. If we are to truly prevent him from carrying out his plans, whatever they may be, we must strike at his blackened heart."

Apparently that was as far as his father was willing to discuss the harbor situation, because he said next, "Have you had any contact with the other ranger units?"

Cam looked away. "Angel Grove hasn't heard anything on Lothor in months. Same with Mariner Bay. Still haven't heard back from Silver Hills or Turtle Cove, though."

"And Reefside?"

"No contact, yet. They're probably busy with their own shapeshifter problems."

"I see." Sensei crossed his paws over his round belly. "Lothor would not be able to amass such a large force without communicating through his established channels. He must have a reason for coming here. These kidnappings are unusual enough in the night world, but juxtaposed with his arrival… It cannot be coincidence."

"Well, so far no one knows anything," Cam said shortly.

_Yo, Cam._

Cam held up a hand to forestall his father and gripped the shard tighter.

_Everything all right, Shane?_

_If a werewolf gang hanging out around the loading docks of the art gallery with two dead guards is all right, then yeah._

_Sarcasm doesn't suit you,_ Cam snapped as he swung to his secondary computer, the one with outside access. He typed furiously at the keyboard. _No alarms have been triggered. I'm establishing a visual._

"There's unusual werewolf activity at the Blue Bay Gallery of Art," he said aloud for his father's benefit. "I'm pulling up the interior security cameras."

One of the first things Cam had done when he took over the technical aspects of Ops was pirate the security systems of Blue Bay Harbor's key buildings and corporations. His transmitters allowed him access to any closed-circuit security feeds almost immediately.

A dark shadow was moving amongst the sculpture displays on the grainy black and white video.

_Seriously, man. Are we going in or what?_ Shane demanded.

_Just hold on a minute._

Cam froze the clearest shot he could find, zooming in and filtering the image on another monitor. The shape was distorted, like the person was wearing a costume or ornamental head gear.

"What is that supposed to be?"

"Shimazu," his father said simply.

_Hunter. Blake. Get to the art gallery now._

_Already on our way,_ Hunter growled in his mind and Cam suppressed a shiver.

His body's reaction to Hunter-- Was something he wouldn't dwell on right now.

"Hunter and Blake are backing them up," Cam said aloud as he relayed the message to Shane and Tori.

Odd, but when he concentrated on individuals, he was able to separate them easier than before. Now they were more like the frequencies on a radio rather than one television image with different actors speaking at once.

_We're dealing with one of Lothor's generals here. Shimazu._ Cam quickly pulled up the profile. _Warlock. Vain. Prone to grand-standing. The gang out back is probably the werewolves he enslaves. He's not well-liked, but he has power so be on your guard--_

_Never let it down,_ Hunter murmured privately as Shane sent, _We're on it. Whatever he's up to, it can't be any good._

Taking a deep breath, Cam started relaying Shimazu's movements to the rangers, tracking Lothor's general with the security cameras. Someone had disabled the alarms for the entire building. Probably an inside job.

The rangers started their infiltration and Cam winced at the security feed. The werewolves went down messily, flashes of what Cam knew to be blue and red witchfire filling the screen. A few strings of code, and the tapes were being erased in their VCRs, Cam sending streaks of magic back along the transmission.

The hardest part about all this-- The telepathy, the Gem shard-- was that he finally knew what he was missing. He could feel the others; their excitement, their fierce pride and the exhilaration of knowing that they were accomplishing something tangible. They weren't stuck behind a computer screen.

The rangers were using stealth magic, so he couldn't see them closing in on Shimazu's location, but he could sense their positions from their thoughts. Hunter and Blake were entering through the roof access, while Tori and Shane were creeping along the halls of the administrative offices.

Movement on one of the screens caught his attention. Unease blossomed in his chest.

_Guys, Marah and Kapri are in the impressionists._

_Huh?_ Shane and Hunter echoed each other.

_East wing,_ he sent, but his cousins captured his attention. They weren't really doing anything. They were just talking in front of a painting like it was noon and not midnight.

_I know where, Cam,_ Tori sent with a mental eye roll. _I'll go see what the damage is._

_I'm behind you,_ Blake sent to her.

"Should I pull Dustin off harbor patrol?" Cam asked out loud to his father.

"Not yet."

Shimazu was in the native art section, hovering in front of a display case. Cam could tell the exact moment the general sensed the rangers, as the warlock whirled towards the exhibit's entrance.

_He knows you're there,_ Cam sent.

The screen lit up, and then went to static. Frowning, Cam tried switching to another feed. There was static on all the cameras. Someone must have physically destroyed the system.

_I've lost visual. Shane-_ -

Cam broke off, clutching his temple.

_S.O.S., dudes! Like, help! NOW!_

A panicked sending from Dustin. Cam blinked rapidly until his vision returned to normal.

_What's your situation?_

_Big, ugly, and mean. With minions. And he just ripped a steel door off its hinges-- Woah shit--_

_Dustin?_

He could sense the ranger's desperate thoughts, too focused on survival to send. Gripping the shard tighter, Cam activated the tracking spell on another computer. A yellow dot appeared at the harbor, zigzagging haphazardly across the screen in blips of movement.

_Dustin's in trouble,_ Cam sent to the others. _He needs back up._

_Kinda got our hands full here,_ Blake responded shortly. None of the other rangers sent specific thoughts, too busy fighting. Even Hunter was just a haze of carefully leashed bloodlust to him.

"Have Shane assist Dustin," his father said.

_Shane--_

_Busy not dying,_ Shane sent loudly, distracted.

"They're dealing with Shimazu," Cam snapped. "Dad, I can get there--"

"No. Lothor will expect us to do so. Both of these attacks may very well be ploys to draw us out and gain access to our headquarters, our information. We cannot risk another infiltration, at all costs."

"I never leave Ops, Dad," he ground out, rising from his chair. "Lothor is probably _expecting_ us to pull one of the other rangers off Shimazu and thin our forces so Shimazu can make off with whatever he was after."

"It would be unwise." His father was implacable. "Dustin will have to retreat."

_Dustin, get out of there,_ Cam sent, glaring at his father.

_Would if I could, man. This guy's sticking to me like--_

Cam sensed Dustin go down through the shard, the pain reverberating through their web. He just wasn't sure where or how.

_Dustin's hurt. Can anyone--_

_Hunter, go to Dustin,_ Shane ordered, and Cam could feel Hunter's reluctance. _I'll be fine. Go._

Dustin still wasn't responding. His already murky mental presence was quiet, unmoving. Cam gripped the shard tighter, until it was glowing bright enough to show the bones in his hand, but he couldn't get Dustin to send back.

"Hunter's on his way," he told his father, but didn't sit down. He tried to divide his attention between the tracking screen, with its pulsing yellow dot, and accessing the outside security cameras of buildings near the gallery.

_We've got more trouble,_ Hunter sent out.

Vexacus had been waiting at the loading bay doors. Cam connected to a university camera across the street in time to see Hunter roll into a defensive position in the loading area.

He could feel the other rangers respond with flashes of emotion-- fear, concern, anger-- in the midst of battle and he knew this was a set up, but for what? Marah and Kapri on Tori and Blake; Shimazu and more of his wolves on Hunter and Shane; an unknown general on Dustin. Vexacus waiting to cut off any rescue attempts.

If this was all an attempt to infiltrate Ops, he'd just have to hope his father could hold the shields until they returned. Cam wasn't going to lose anyone else to Lothor.

He slapped the Gem shard on the computer hutch. Its edges were bloody again but his hand didn't hurt.

"Hunter's been detained. I'm going," he threw over his shoulder as he ran up the stairs.

"Cameron!" His father called after him, a command.

For once in his life, Cam ignored him.

He hit the back alley pavement and kicked off. Ninja streaking was a magic skill only rangers learned, and even if Cam had never been formally trained, he still had ears and eyes. He still practiced quite a few skills 'informally.'

The loading cranes of the harbor quickly loomed overhead. Cam streaked to a warehouse roof and took a moment to focus on Dustin's presence. East. No, north-east. He streaked behind a shipping container and tried again.

There. Lothor's thugs were on the deck of a huge freighter vessel, circling the busted hatch to the cargo hold. Cam let his streaking momentum take down the nearest ones. They didn't get back up.

Surprise only took him so far, though, and he lost time subduing the rest. The path of Dustin and his attacker through the vessel was easy to follow, since Cam just had to step over broken cargo containers and busted doorways. Some of the metal looked shredded as he stepped into the main cargo hold.

_Dustin?_ He sent out, hoping to get a response. There were hundreds of containers and only emergency lights to see by.

Instead, he sensed another presence, and he froze. It wasn't quite… human? He didn't feel it the way he had the gang above or Dustin. There was something-- Off.

He dodged before he realized he'd been attacked, instinct carrying him up and over to the next row of containers. The ones he'd been standing next to crumpled in on itself. Crouching low, Cam frowned. He couldn't see anyone--

He blocked the heavy fist before it connected with his head, but the force of the blow sent him flying back down. Rolling, he quickly regained his feet.

_Dustin._

If he used his witchfire now, he might accidentally fry his teammate. He thought Dustin was off to his left, but wasn't sure how close. Metal conducted witchfire in much the same way it did electricity.

A groan echoed from nearby as Cam dodged another punch. He still couldn't see his attacker.

But. He could sense it.

Cam closed his eyes, inhaling deeply and bringing his open palm down on his closed fist in front of him. The crack of witchfire lit up his vision, bright fluorescent green, arcing through the metal containers and singeing the wooden ones.

His opponent shuddered into view, streaks of electric power crawling over its… metal exoskeleton?

What the hell? His attacker was a reject from The Terminator?

The thing was still giving off sparks as it swung at Cam. Holding his ground, Cam felt power building in his fists, through his arms, faster than he'd ever summoned it before. His hands were glowing green again.

Cam didn't question it. He just let loose with a solid blow to the thing's breast plate, feeling the metal casing resist then begin to crack. An arc of solid green witchfire lifted the general up, slamming it back into a metal container.

"Ow, man," Dustin grumbled as he staggered out of a collapsed wooden crate to the left. "What's with the light show?"

Keeping one eye on their twitching opponent, Cam glanced at Dustin. The other ranger had blood running down the side of his unmasked face and was clutching his elbow, but was otherwise mobile. Good.

_We need to move out,_ Cam sent.

Dustin's thoughts were choppy, flitting around like sunlight on falling leaves.

"Cam?" Dustin's head jerked up, but then he winced, clutching his forehead. "Ow. Ow. Worse than brain-freeze, ow."

_If you're that coherent, we can get going._

Cam caught him by the bicep, pulling him towards the exit.

_What are you doing here, dude?_ Dustin staggered. _Where's everybody else?_

Reaching out along the threads connecting them, Cam could still feel the rangers on the other side of town. Marah and Kapri had fled, so Blake and Tori were backing Shane up with Shimazu and company. Hunter was slamming Vexacus into the pavement again.

_They're holding their own, for now. We need to get you back to Ops._

_We gotta help them--_

"Motodrone. Return to base for repairs."

Both rangers tensed as the new voice rang out in the cargo hold behind them.

_You're in no condition to fight,_ Cam sent, shoving Dustin ahead of him through the busted exit door. _We need to get out of here._

_Not arguing, man,_ Dustin agreed. They slipped out onto the deck.

"What have we here?" The same voice purred, closer now. "A ranger and a good Samaritan?"

Sensing where, Cam whirled around, fists coming up in a defensive position. The man was perched on the hatch above them.

"Or is that two rangers?" He said, jumping down to the deck. "You know, you ruined my new toy. That makes me very unhappy."

Madropolis. Cam tried to recall the general's file.

_Warlock. Specialty is animating objects. Can drain the power of other warlocks to do it._

_Oh, is that all?_

Cam couldn't tell if Dustin was joking or if he'd been hit harder than Cam thought.

_We need a plan._

No doubt Cam would start tiring soon, considering he was unused to actual field conditions. They needed to have enough distance between them and Madropolis before then.

The general wasn't alone, either. Reinforcements were crawling up the sides of the ship, along the gangplanks. Cam didn't bother counting, but it wasn't the usual size of one of Lothor's gangs. Damn.

Madropolis was watching them with a smirk. Since he was just standing there, he was probably waiting for the gangs to finish them off.

Cam kept his defensive position as the numbers grew around them. Centering himself, he followed the threads of their web back to the other rangers again. Hunter had finished with Vexacus and was continuing on his original mission to assist Dustin.

_Hurry,_ Cam sent grimly. _We're surrounded._

_Cam?_ Hunter kept streaking. _Where are-- Why are you at the docks?_

Madropolis sprang into action before he could form a response, aiming a kick at Cam's head. He blocked and countered but was left reeling from the impact. Dustin intercepted another blow aimed at Cam, and grunted in pain, arm going limp.

Determined, Cam surged to his feet. Madropolis lost the smirk as he was forced on the defensive, giving up ground to Cam when the ranger infused each hit with green witchfire.

Adrenaline sang through his veins. This was what he was meant to be doing.

Lothor's henchmen joined the fray, falling upon Dustin. The injured ranger refused to back down and held his own, so Cam focused all his energy on Madropolis. Hunter arrived as Cam was kicking the general back through the broken hatch.

_Thought you weren't allowed out to play._

Hunter grinned as he took down two thugs. He'd lost his mask somewhere along the way and his cheek was bloody, but his blue eyes were glittering in the deck lights and Cam could feel the beat of Hunter's heart in his head, felt his own speed up in response.

Adopting a cool expression, he covered Dustin's six.

_Technically, I'm still not._

_Someone's gonna be in trouble,_ Hunter crowed.

Madropolis reappeared on deck, distracting them. Cam and Hunter tag-teamed the general in between watching Dustin's back and each other's. Hunter hit harder, but Cam was more flexible and could get in more strikes.

His thoughts narrowed down to the ebb and flow of the battle. He wasn't the only one surprised when the remaining three rangers appeared on deck beside Dustin.

Taking one look at all of them, Madropolis turned tail and fled back into the cargo hold. Hunter followed without hesitation, and Cam took off after him.

_Trap._ He rebuffed Hunter as the lamia ran down the main break in the containers.

_Maybe. I smell something weird._

Hunter scaled one of the metal containers. Cam paused below. He couldn't make out any scents beyond saltwater, motor oil, and fish. But he could see if there was anyone else waiting for them.

_What was that? What did you just do?_ Hunter fired the questions at him as soon as Cam started reaching out with his mind. _You've been doing that all night--_

_I'll explain later. There're at least four more ahead, to your right._

Freezing, Hunter tilted his head to the side, listening.

_I don't hear anything. Not even heartbeats._

_Stealth magic?_ But that wouldn't make sense.

_Meaning ranger training?_ Hunter asked wryly. _Wonder where Lothor's been recruiting these days…_

Frowning, Cam started edging forward. He moved cautiously, alert for any magic trip wires, but encountered nothing. The minds he sensed were suddenly behind him.

He spun, expecting an attack. There was no one. Only Hunter watching from his perch.

_This is officially creepy,_ Cam grumbled.

_Story of my life._

Cam started back the way he came. There were definitely only four people, clustered together. Madropolis had probably slipped out the other side of the hold, near the pier. Cam paused.

The blue container on the right. It was like a dead spot when he was walking past it, but not once he was out of its range. The people were in there.

Hunter was at his side in an instant. The lamia stepped forward, only to recoil quickly.

"Fah," he snorted in disgust, hand covering his nose. _That's the weird smell. By the goddess, that reeks._

_I don't smell anything--_ Cam cut himself off. He and Hunter both sent, _Blood magic._

_Beautiful. Something I can't even touch._ Hunter glared at the offending container. _Does your new Spidey-sense let you talk to them, too?_

_I don't think so,_ Cam sent dryly. _But I can probably undo the wards._

He focused on the rangers topside.

_Blake, I need you down here._

The younger Bradley might have bristled at the order, but once Cam explained the situation, he was soon at their side.

_Lothor's thugs beat feet once Madropolis bailed._ Blake reported as he and Cam studied the weave of the wards. _Shane and Tori are on clean up. Dustin's taking a breather._

_Good,_ Hunter sent from a bearable distance. _I'll just wait back here._

The actual wards didn't take that long to disable. The problem was opening the container when it was wedged in on both sides and had another one on top. All the other metal containers had doors except theirs.

_Access door must be against the hull,_ Cam sighed.

The hold was still unnaturally silent, but he knew that Hunter could hear slow heartbeats from within now. They were on borrowed time as it was, risking a run-in with the human police the longer they stayed. They couldn't risk an explosion on the ship and any fast-acting corrosive spells Cam knew required arcane tools residing back in Ops.

_Hey, Shane,_ Hunter sent. _Wanna finally put those fire skills to use and be a walking welding torch?_

_Very funny, jackass._

Cam turned to Hunter with a speculative look.

_That just might work._

Hunter blinked at him, then smirked.

_You heard the man, flamer._

_Oh, whatever--_

Cam rolled his eyes at Blake, who snorted in agreement for once. Tuning out Shane and Hunter's bickering, Cam trailed a hand along the metal plating of the container. It was slimy to the touch, but not wet. Residual magic? He had a feeling that wasn't rust discoloring the bottom.

The end of the shipping container was separated into two panels by a support pole. Cam knocked on one, then the other, deciding which one was least likely to have something, or someone, leaning against it.

_This one,_ he sent to Shane, who stepped forward with a determined expression.

_Never done this before, so here goes…_

Rangers were trained to defend their society in a tradition that traced back to the earliest civilizations. But rangers were night worlders first, and for warlocks and witches, that meant identification with a particular element. Shane instinctively knew how to wield his fire, just like Dustin knew the earth and Tori the water. They watched Shane melt the edges of the panel in silence.

_Guys, we've got a patrol car pulling onto the pier,_ Tori sent. _I've cloaked us, but if he wants to come investigate, we've got problems._

_Noted._ Cam glanced at Shane, then Hunter and Blake. _As soon as we can, we get these people out. If they're night world, we take them to the Bloody Mary. Human, we leave them in front of Blue Bay General's ER._

_I was going to say that,_ Shane sent, teeth grinding with the effort of maintaining his fire.

Cam merely lifted an eyebrow, unimpressed.

_And you tell me to play nice,_ Hunter sent privately. _I thought he was your team's field leader?_

_Your team too, now,_ Cam reminded him, eyes focused on the panel. _And it's nothing more than I would have relayed from Ops._

_I guess you seem more commanding in the field, then,_ Hunter sent innocently. _All take charge and grab 'em by the balls. Very assertive. Very hot._

Cam glared at him in disbelief.

_You are_ not _flirting with me right now._

Hunter smirked.

The busted door creaked, and Dustin hobbled down the hatch, joining them. He wasn't in any condition to carry someone. Neither was Tori if they wanted a clean escape from the cops. That left Cam and the others.

Shane wrenched the panel off, handling the molten red edges like they were nothing. The advantages of witchfire. Cautiously, Cam placed a glowing hand in the gaping opening. The aura of blood magic had dispelled with the wards and it didn't feel like there were any latent spells. He ducked inside.

The air was stale but dry. Six bodies were laid out on pallets, strapped down and handcuffed to the frames. There was no pattern to their ages or their looks, but Cam could sense the power in the four still alive. The dead were a young girl and a very old man. All the bodies were frail, like they'd been starved.

Anger churned in his gut and he knew the other rangers were seeing the images in his thoughts. He blocked out their responses, focused instead on freeing the survivors. They wouldn't be able to carry the dead with them.

_Does anyone have a communicator?_ He asked while he worked. Dustin did. _Tell my father to arrange a cleanup._

Dustin stepped away from the container as Blake crawled in, helping Cam to lift the body of a twenty-something male and pass him out to Shane. There were two more males and a female, one a teenager and the other two in their thirties or forties. They were all wearing scrubs, and probably under some sort of stasis spell. This was obviously an organized operation. Who knew where these people were from originally, but they had been brought here for something.

_Dudes,_ Dustin sent once they were all out of the container. _Sensei's, like, pissed. Isn't that a sign of the apocalypse?_

_He'll get over it,_ Cam snapped, lifting the woman in his arms. She couldn't have weighed more than ninety pounds.

_Move out,_ Shane interrupted before Dustin could say anything else.

They hurried to the deck. Tori was standing at the edge, watching the patrol car that had parked at the pier's end.

_They're probably waiting for back-up,_ she sent, uncrossing her arms. _By the time they get up here, we'll be gone._

_Good._ Shane shifted his survivor to a more secure position. _We split up, pairs of two. Tori-Cam, Dustin-Hunter, Blake-me. Rendezvous at the Bloody Mary. Skyla's on hostel duty tonight._

If Cam felt Hunter's concern push against his mental shields before they disappeared in different directions, he didn't acknowledge him. He'd deal with it all later.

~~~

The last time Hunter had visited the Bloody Mary, he'd been under Lothor's employ and new to town. No one had been willing to answer his questions, and he'd been given useless platitudes and cold shoulders instead of anything helpful.

But now-- Showing up with all three Blue Bay Harbor rangers and Cam Watanabe definitely changed the local reception. Hunter felt like an idiot all over again for believing Lothor's lies when faces that had been wary of him alone lit up at the sight of their ranger uniforms.

Yeah, the night worlders here were really terrorized by rogue rangers.

The team had streaked to the club in pairs and congregated out back with the victims rescued from Lothor. Hunter protectively cradled the young man in his arms as they went inside. The kid was younger than Blake.

There weren't that many people in the bar area, but the crowd parted respectfully to let them through. Hunter repressed a growl when he recognized two of Lothor's goons at a back table.

_Hunter,_ Cam sent in warning, not even looking over his shoulder.

Hunter focused on the witch behind the counter, who was setting aside a glass and stepping towards them. Her curly black hair was piled high on her head, and unlike the rest of the clientele, she wore a billowy white skirt and peasant blouse with flip-flops.

"Blessed be," she said softly as she came forward to greet them. The rest of the bar had fallen silent at their approach.

Her eyes were on Shane, so Hunter assumed this was the Skyla that Dustin had been teasing the other ranger about for weeks.

Cam spoke first, rescued woman lying unconscious in his arms, and Hunter was surprised that Shane deferred to him.

"Blessed be. We request sanctuary and aid on behalf of these Kin."

Old words, powerful words of binding and ritual. Sanctuaries were neutral territory, but rangers, while definitely a non-neutral policing force, could speak on behalf of other night worlders to the sanctuary keepers. The pact was centuries old.

There was no place for gang loyalties or violence within sanctuary walls, and anyone could ask to be sheltered, but to accept that assistance was to be bound by sanctuary rules. To break those rules was to invite ruin on yourself and those around you. Every night worlder knew that.

Skyla stepped up to Cam, slim fingers resting on the woman's forehead. A frown spread across Skyla's face as she assessed the woman's condition.

She was a healer, then.

Something in Hunter's chest relaxed. Born-healers could literally re-stitch the fabric of a body's existence. A dangerous power in the wrong hands, but the best chance the former hostages had at survival.

"Bring them upstairs," she said abruptly, voice still soft, pulling her hand away. She went to the stairs behind the bar. "Quickly now."

She led them up to a long hall with evenly spaced cots, then continued through to a back room filled with hanging herbs and cabinets of jars. An apothecary's workshop-- The night world version of a hospital.

Skyla paused long enough to touch the foreheads of the other three victims, lingering over the young man in Hunter's arms.

"This one, place him on the bench," she said as she waved to an examination table against the wall. "His situation is most dire. Find cots for the others. Dustin, sit down and rest that leg."

She motioned to a chair in the long room, and everyone moved to comply with her orders.

Hunter laid the young man down and stepped back out of the way. Cam deposited his patient on one of the cots right outside the door and returned to the room to stand next to Hunter.

Glancing at him, Hunter couldn't help but worry at the fatigue lining Cam's face. Whatever mojo Cam had been working out there had obviously taken its toll.

The warlock gave him an offended glare and sent him an image of barred doors. Hunter smirked but turned a solemn expression back to the scene before them.

Skyla's movements were swift and economical, urgent without being alarming. She rapidly gathered a pile of herbs, bags, and rocks on a table. She looked at Cam inquisitively as she chose jars from the shelves, seemingly at random.

Hunter tried not to bristle at the familiarity in her gaze. When she glanced at him, her eyes held a trace of amusement.

"There's something different about your energies, Watanabe," she mused, deftly laying a line of stones down the young man's chest as she spoke. "Is this why I haven't seen hide nor hair of you for weeks… or is there another reason?"

Her tone was teasing, but Cam stiffened at Hunter's side. "I've been busy."

Her gaze sobered. "I'm sure you are. I've been hearing some disturbing tales these days..."

Blake and Tori were watching over the other victims in the long hall with Dustin, but Shane reappeared in the doorway of the room. The web rippled with jealousy.

"Is there anything we can do to help?" Shane asked, looking at her hopefully and pointedly ignoring Cam.

"You can take those sachets and place them over their hearts."

The smile Skyla gave Shane was far different from the one she'd directed at Cam, and Hunter relaxed. So it was like that.

_We have far more important things to worry about,_ Cam sent to him privately.

But he didn't argue about Hunter's right to feel possessive like Hunter was expecting, so he considered it a win. Cam glared at him.

"What have you been hearing?" Cam asked Skyla instead, but didn't move away from Hunter's side.

"Many newcomers appearing in the city from far off places. Familiar faces who have disappeared." She leveled him a look. "People are restless. Tense. The streets are not comfortable for those outside of certain circles."

She glanced at Hunter with that. He tensed and ground his teeth when he realized who she meant, and she nodded.

"There are those who wish to stay uninvolved and have spoken of moving on, but their unease cannot account for the number of those who have vanished."

Cam wandered over to the worktable and glanced at the markings on the inside of the doorframe. The sigils flared when Skyla waved at them, but Hunter didn't understand what it was until some of the tension left Cam's shoulders.

"We've been watching the harbor," Cam said quietly.

Skyla pressed her lips together. "I heard that there was a night worlder body found off the coast, in waters north of here. Pulled in by a fishing trawler. The Mariana. Her crew was a mix of night world and human. Not many from that run remain onboard."

She and Cam shared a long look, and then Cam slowly nodded.

"Thank you," he said quietly.

Waving her hand at the door again, Skyla sat on a stool beside the young man.

Hunter breathed evenly through his nose, keeping his heartbeat steady. She'd just-- The sanctuary was--

_Skyla is a healer first._ Cam sent, thoughts solemn. _She is neutral, but there are times when she cannot look away. Father and I do everything in our power to keep her confidences secret. If she's sharing this, then the city is worse off than we feared._

They let her work in silence after that, until she motioned for Hunter to lift her patient.

"Find a cot for him and bring in the woman next." She turned to her table as Hunter complied.

Blake and Tori were sitting on the edge of a cot while Shane paced around the aisle. Curious eyes watched them from the other end of the hall.

Hunter laid the young man down and nodded at the woman when Shane stepped forward. Shane scooped her up and Hunter followed him back inside the room.

"Do we know what kind of spell they're under?" Shane asked as he deposited her on the bench. Skyla sat beside her.

"There are at least two spells on her," Skyla said in a distracted tone, hands doing something complicated over the woman's left hand. "One is a stasis spell, to keep them alive but asleep. That was all the young man had. But she… has something else. Something… draining her… essence? It feels like a vacuum plucking at her skin. That could explain why he was worse off, if the spell was completed and dispelled…"

After a moment, Skyla sat back and turned to them.

"This spell is going to take some time to untangle from their energies, and you've obviously had a long night. I can treat Dustin, if you wish to leave…"

Shane glanced at Cam, who had a considering expression.

_Am I correct in assuming that your growling earlier meant you recognized Lothor's men downstairs?_ Cam asked Hunter over the party line. Shane frowned sharply at them.

_Yeah._

"I would feel indebted if we just left," Cam said in a normal voice that carried out to the long hall. "Why don't Shane and Dustin stay to help you, in repayment for healing Dustin?"

Skyla arched an eyebrow, eyes questioning as she looked to Shane. He wasn't standing in view of the door, so he said, "Works for me," before mouthing, _I'll explain later_ , at her.

"That is acceptable, ranger," she responded formally, sealing the bargain.

"Thank you for your hospitality," Cam said with a respectful bow.

_Dustin and Shane will stay here. The rest of us will report back to Ops and inform Sensei of what's happened. Shane, Skyla probably knows what's going on, but warn her just the same. If Lothor's kidnapping night worlders off the streets, then we can't trust him to respect sanctuary law._

If Cam was apprehensive about facing his father after directly disobeying his wishes, nothing bled through the web. All Hunter could pick up were spikes and barbed wire, and grim determination covering a well of exhaustion.

"Okay," Hunter said aloud, ushering Cam out. "It was nice to meet you, ma'am. Blake, Tori, let's head out."

Cam gave him a look but exited the room. Hunter knocked fists with Shane and winked at Skyla, who grinned indulgently back.

The curious gazes from the far end of the hall were conspicuously absent when the rangers left.

Sensei was waiting for them next to Cam's main keyboard, the picture of serenity. Having endured more than one lecture from his parents and then Sensei Omino, Hunter knew Cam was in deep shit and Ops was about to become a battlefield.

Sensei Omino. Hunter fought the grief that threatened to rise at the thought that their master had ended up like those people. Skin and bones with sunken faces…

They all fell into a loose line in front of the computers, Blake lagging behind. Hunter caught his eye and raised a brow.

_I'm cool, Bro._

Hunter let it go. They were all tired and they'd just been dragged through one helluva night. Hunter's own wounds were superficial, stinging now that he thought about them. He couldn't help glancing at Cam's stoic profile.

One crazy night, and Hunter hadn't missed the fact that the Gem of Souls shard was sitting right next to Cam's father. The freaky mojo Cam had been working wasn't the Gem amplifying his powers.

The silence was awkward, with just the four of them standing at attention, so Hunter spoke up.

"We left Shane and Dustin at the Bloody Mary with the people we rescued. Skyla's working on them right now."

Sensei looked at him with his little black eyes and Hunter shut up. Yeah, looking on the bright side wasn't going to make this any less painful for Cam.

"Tonight was very eventful," Sensei said, and his voice was jarring in its sternness.

"Normally I would wish to reserve my analysis until after Shane and Dustin arrived, but I believe the circumstances call for a preliminary review. Cameron, if you would retrieve the appropriate profiles from our databases."

It wasn't a suggestion and Cam moved stiffly, back ramrod straight as he sat in the chair to pull up Shimazu's file. Hunter couldn't read him at all, which was disconcerting. He watched the shift of muscles in Cam's forearm as he accessed the computer and remembered what Cam had looked like out there, in action.

Like usual, Cam ignored Hunter's thoughts and tagged three other files after a moment of searching. Hunter got that Cam's powers were more attuned to technology than a traditional element, but it was still a little weird to see the computer scrolling through pages without Cam's hand moving on the touchpad.

"You encountered Shimazu inside the art gallery, then Marah and Kapri?" Sensei asked Tori and Blake, who both nodded. "What do you believe their purpose to be?"

They exchanged glances.

"Shimazu wasn't doing much," Blake mused. "He didn't even touch any of the displays. Just cackled and ran around. We fought his werewolves more than him."

"It was the same with Marah and Kapri," Tori added thoughtfully. "Like, they weren't really trying that hard to fight us? Marah said something about breaking a nail and disappeared. Kapri was playing tag."

"I see." Sensei looked to Hunter. "And Vexacus accosted you on the loading docks?"

Hunter winced, feeling every scrape. "He was definitely there to stop us from leaving. And he definitely meant it when he was fighting."

"So there is a high probability that the focus of Lothor's operations for the night was at the dock and they were merely a distraction. Dustin reported two generals. Cameron?"

Cam's jaw was set in stone. He didn't turn around, just called up two profiles.

"Motodrone and Madropolis. Madropolis showed up after we disabled Motodrone, but he had a large gang with him. Largest I've seen on the streets so far. It was a mix of made-vampires and shapeshifters. No lamia or witches. They didn't seem to be protecting anything in particular. Just engaging me and Dustin."

"And after Hunter arrived?" Sensei's tone gave nothing away. 

Hunter exchanged uneasy glances with Blake and Tori.

"Madropolis fled through the ship. We gave chase."

"Where you found the six bodies in a cargo container, hidden by blood magic."

Sensei knew, Hunter realized. Sensei knew what it meant that Cam had left the Shard behind.

"Yes," Cam ground out.

Blake and Tori were sending to each other, little snippets of confusion and speculation, but Hunter blocked them out. Focused on Cam's stiff shoulders. Cam's thoughts were roiling, he could sense that much. Blake and Tori probably couldn't.

Sensei wasn't going to say anything more until Cam did, though. Hunter picked that up from Cam.

"What happened to the ship?" He asked to break the awkward tension.

Blake repressed a long-suffering sigh. _So much for my socialization efforts._

Sensei looked at Hunter and crossed his paws on his belly.

"The police have impounded the vessel. They currently have the area cordoned off and are reporting it as an act of vandalism." His voice was mild when he addressed Cam. "I believe our investigation should begin with that ship's origins. If we can establish where it has docked, we may find Lothor's base."

Cam nodded sharply, but still didn't speak. His fingers flew across the keyboard. He was pissed.

Hunter wondered if he should bring up Skyla's information, or if Cam would tell Sensei later in private. Once he calmed down. If he ever calmed down.

"There was a night worlder corpse pulled from the ocean recently," Cam said suddenly. Hunter imagined he was getting a mental finger in his direction at the moment. "Northern waters. It might be a place to start."

"I'll leave it to you."

Hunter winced at the sharp edge to Cam's thoughts after that. But Cam nodded and started typing rapidly again.

With Cam doing his thing on the computer, Sensei turned to the rest of them.

"We will reconvene when Shane and Dustin arrive. Until then, I suggest you tend to your injuries and eat something."

And that was a clear dismissal even Hunter recognized. He bowed with Blake and Tori, and followed them as they retreated up the stairs, but he felt wrong just leaving Cam to obviously be chewed out. He wasn't picking anything up from the other man, though, and the mental silence was worse the farther upstairs Hunter went.

"Quit worrying so much," Blake murmured as they went up the next flight to the apartment, leaving Tori the dojo guest bathroom. "Cam's a big boy."

Hunter glared at him and Blake paused in the stairwell, cocking his head at Hunter.

When Hunter tried to duck past him, Blake caught his arm, and Hunter had the feeling Blake had seen way more than he wanted.

"For real?" Blake asked, tone curious and wary, but not shocked.

He didn't need telepathy to know what his little brother was thinking. Blake wasn't blind and Hunter didn't need to spell things out. He had no idea what to say, anyway.

So he rolled his eyes, shrugged, and kept trudging up to the apartment. They'd moved their stuff in the other day and Hunter had unwittingly chosen Cam's old room. It hadn't helped things between them.

Blake hesitated behind him, worry bleeding through.

"You always gotta do things the hard way…"

Hunter gave him a speaking look and stomped into his room. There were only two full baths in the apartment, and neither of them was willing to use Sensei's bathroom, so Hunter grabbed a change of clothes and got to their bathroom first.

He hissed when the hot water hit his back, but he didn't smell that much blood, so he figured he'd be fine. Blake was lurking outside the door, a muffled presence, and that made Hunter frown.

Reaching out for Cam's mind had become second nature somewhere along the way. It was a little reassuring, Hunter supposed. To be able to just think of Cam and know how he was or what he was doing. To know that Hunter wasn't alone.

But he had to work for it with the others. Hunter had to actually be near Blake to feel his presence and then he couldn't hear his thoughts, just little impressions of emotion.

Only now it seemed like Cam was getting better at shutting Hunter out, and he wasn't sure how he felt about that. He just… wanted to know. Like, everything about Cam.

He and Blake were going to start working at Storm Chargers with Dustin in a couple days, if Lothor's goons didn't kill them first, so they'd be gone most of the day, and Cam still wouldn't even talk to Hunter about their kiss. About what they were doing. Or not doing, as was the current case.

He felt like he was running out of time, and he didn't know why.

Turning the bathroom over to Blake, Hunter headed back down to the dojo kitchen with a brooding feeling building in his chest. He paused at the fridge, head turning to the basement door.

Cam's emotions were leaking out now, anger and bitterness. They morphed into shock, then hopefulness. Hunter haphazardly threw four sandwiches together. He caught something about Cam's mother. Lothor. The Gem.

He was distracted when Tori came out of the spare room looking freshly showered and smiling tiredly at him. He grinned back, balancing the plate of sandwiches and two bottles of water.

"Are they still talking down there?" She whispered, and he was thrown for a moment because it had been so obvious to him.

"Doesn't sound like it," Hunter whispered back and opened the basement door. "I'll scout ahead. You feed Blake."

Her smile softened at his brother's name, and Hunter was happy for them. Really, he was, because Blake needed someone as caring and level-headed as Tori when their life was such a mess.

He made sure to thump his way down the stairs. Cam was still sitting at his computer where they had left him, and Sensei was doing something with his little tablet station Cam had rigged. The atmosphere definitely felt more relaxed.

"Hey," Hunter said out loud, setting the plate at Cam's elbow. He held out the bottled water and Cam looked at it blankly for a second before accepting.

"Thanks," he said quietly.

Hunter grabbed a sandwich and nudged the plate at him, which earned him a small grin. He liked the look on Cam. Cam rolled his eyes.

_Got things settled?_ Hunter sent, just to confirm.

Cam met his eyes and Hunter forgot to chew for a moment.

_I'm fine, Hunter. Really. We just talked a few issues out._

Like the fact that Cam going back out in the field again, Hunter picked up. Awesome.

Seeing Cam in action had been as breathtaking as Hunter had expected. His lightning-fast strikes, the sharp lines of his form. He didn't have Hunter's raw strength, but he was quick on his feet, constantly adapting. And very flexible…

Cam nearly choked on his sandwich. Sensei didn't even look up as Cam raised an incredulous eyebrow at Hunter.

_We were in the middle of fighting for our lives and you were checking 'my form' out?_

Hunter knew his grin was smug.

_I'm a man of many talents..._

Cam snorted and ate another sandwich as he returned his attention to his computer. Apparently ignoring Hunter's flirting was his latest coping strategy, but Hunter had faith that it wouldn't last long.

"Dustin and Shane are back," Cam announced suddenly, and Hunter felt the tingle of the wards a few moments later. "I'll call everyone down."

"Thank you, Cameron," Sensei said, finally looking up.

For a second, Hunter felt a little weird for telepathically flirting with the man's son right in front of him. But honestly, weirdness was relative once your sensei was a talking guinea pig. The guy was so quiet in that form, he'd probably heard Hunter flirting with Cam out loud before, which Hunter was so not thinking about.

So Hunter read over Cam's shoulder, leaning on the chair back since it irked the hell out of Cam when he did it. Cam was flicking through frames of code, the Blue Bay Harbor police and harbor patrol report systems, the DMV, and a GPS program. Thoughts of charts and triangulation and weather patterns and currents flitted through his mind.

_Think you can find Lothor's base this way?_ He sent without thinking to speak aloud.

Cam tilted his head back, looking up at Hunter.

_Maybe. It will take me a while. But it's the best chance we have now that I know what I'm looking for. Assuming that the corpse was from one of Lothor's ships, which I think is safe to say since Skyla mentioned it. I'm retrieving the case files now._

The lines of fatigue were gone from around Cam's eyes, Hunter realized suddenly. Cam smirked and opened his left hand, revealing the Gem shard.

_I said I was fine._

Hunter frowned. Even if the thing had kept him alive for a week, it still wasn't an excuse for Cam to run himself into the ground--

Cam's gaze sharpened.

_I'm fine. My mother came from a line of telepaths that could manipulate the energy of crystals to amplify their powers. It's instinctive for me._

Which partly explained Cam's emotions earlier, but Hunter still didn't trust it. Cam rolled his eyes and turned away again. He wasn't going to share any more personal information.

"Quit hovering," he muttered, and elbowed Hunter in the hip without looking.

Hunter snorted but went over to flop on the futon as everyone trooped noisily down. Blake gave him a look that Hunter ignored by leaning his head back and closing his eyes. It really had been a long night.

Shane was talking to Sensei, giving him report. Dustin was obviously feeling better, since he was attempting to shadow box with Blake, who was half-heartedly swatting back.

"Rangers," Sensei commanded their attention.

Hunter opened his eyes, but no one else was standing at attention, so he remained sitting.

"This night, we have gained valuable information on Lothor's schemes," Sensei began. "Our suspicions that his operations are related to the harbor activity have been confirmed. We have the name of one of his vessels and with that we can track its previous movement. We know how he is draining his victims of their magical energies, as he has admitted to doing in the past, and we know that there is hope for those who have been taken to survive.

"Our goal continues to be to find his base of operations, and I have no doubt that we can narrow down our search area further.

"Until then-- Shane, Blake, Hunter. Continue to patrol the streets, and thwart any gang activity you encounter. Tori, you will accompany them when you are not assisting Cameron. Dustin, continue to search the ships in the harbor. There may be more victims lying out there. If you encounter anything suspicious or think you may have found someone, contact Cameron and he will meet you to assist."

Hunter nodded along with the other rangers. He let Sensei's conviction settle in his bones and felt like finally he was on a true and worthy path, his sense of purpose clear and without doubt.

Justice, honor, family…

Cam caught his eye and smiled.

They could do this, and they would win.

**Author's Note:**

> [Tumblr](https://jrocci.tumblr.com/)


End file.
